Immunotherapy in breast cancer: Current status and future directions
Abstract
Breast cancer, one of the leading causes of death in women in the United States, challenges therapeutic success in patients due to tumor heterogeneity, treatment resistance, metastasis and disease recurrence. Knowledge of immune system involvement in normal breast development and breast cancer has led to extensive research into the immune landscape of breast cancer and multiple immunotherapy clinical trials in breast cancer patients. However, poor immunogenicity and T-cell infiltration along with heightened immunosuppression in the tumor microenvironment have been identified as potential challenges to the success of immunotherapy in breast cancer. Oncodrivers, owing to their enhanced expression and stimulation of tumor cell proliferation and survival, present an excellent choice for targeted immunotherapy development in breast cancer. Loss of anti-tumor immune response specific to oncodrivers has been reported in breast cancer patients as well. Dendritic cell vaccines have been tested for their efficacy in generating anti-tumor T-cell response against specific tumor-associated antigens and oncodrivers and have shown improved survival outcome in patients. Here, we review the current status of immunotherapy in breast cancer, focusing on dendritic cell vaccines and their therapeutic application in breast cancer. We further discuss future directions of breast cancer immunotherapy and potential combination strategies involving dendritic cell vaccines and existing chemotherapeutics…
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Highly immune suppressive myeloid cells such as macrophages are one factor driving resistance to immune therapy.
“One factor driving resistance is highly immune suppressive myeloid cells (MCs) such as macrophages.”
From Cholesterol efflux protein, ABCA1, supports anticancer functions of myeloid immune cells (2026) · cites this paper as [14]
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Development of NR0B2 as a therapeutic target for the re-education of tumor associated myeloid cells
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Cholesterol efflux protein, ABCA1, supports anticancer functions of myeloid immune cells
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“Because ICB already targets T cells, we have focused on myeloid immune cells, which have been strongly implicated in tumor progression, resistance to conventional therapy, and resistance to ICB ( 6 , 15 , 16 ).”
- Authors
- Basu, A. B., Ramamoorthi, G., Jia, Y., Faughn, J., Wiener, D. A., Awshah, S., Kodumudi, K. N., & Czerniecki, B. J.
- Affiliations
- Moffitt Cancer Center (US)
- Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital (CN)
- University of South Florida (US)
- Corresponding author
- Krithika Nandakumar Kodumudi
- Brian J. Czerniecki
- ORCID
- Venue
- Advances in Cancer Research
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Published
- 2019
- Volume
- 143
- Pages
- 295-349
- ISSN
- 0065-230X (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2943180760
- Cited by
- 109
- References
- 8
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 28 · 2022: 27 · 2021: 17 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 2
- FWCI
- 23.23
- Type
- book chapter
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Advances in cancer research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › Immunotherapy and Immune Responses
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer Immunotherapy and Biomarkers
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cancer Research › Breast Cancer Treatment Studies
- Keywords
- breast cancer immunotherapy, dendritic cell vaccine, immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, tumor-associated antigens, antitumor T-cell responses, tumor heterogeneity, treatment resistance, tumor immunogenicity
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Antineoplastic Agents, Breast Neoplasms, Female, Humans, Immunotherapy, T-Lymphocytes, Cancer Vaccines, Tumor Microenvironment
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